Thread 99 (yes, 99!): Join us for spirited discussions of The Archers and its Top Blokes, whether you're Team Elizabeth (low spirits), Team Kate (Spiritual Home) or Team Toby (spirits =gin)

[Bittermints]

Thanks due to @PseudoBadger for kicking off this long, long series of Archers threads and to @DadDadDad for being our resident statistician and keeping the ball rolling when Pseudo stepped back a bit. Thanks also to all those who contributed to the thread title.

All views on The Archers welcome here! New blood welcomed. We don't all agree on all points and most of us are posting tongue in cheek a lot of the time, so don't worry about revealing that you'd like to be Susan's best friend or other odd unusual views.

Spoilers: not on this thread, please. We don't wait for the omnibus to discuss the weeknight episodes, but we do try our best to avoid cross-contamination from www.mumsnet.com/Talk/radio_addicts/3439443-keep-it-to-yourself-the-archers-spoilers-thread-4, where spoilers are positively welcomed!

So, to business. What a fantastic two-hander. Massive BOOP points to Alison Dowling, the scriptwriter and director (and the therapist). I had more than a small tear in my eye listening to that.

I'm another one with a vote of thanks to chemenger for all that information on the last thread about distilling. I should know some of that because I went on a tour of the whisky distillery near where my parents live but I've forgotten most of it except how delicious the end product is.

What had Jenny done to the kitchen? Arranged the tagine in an attractive way? LOL! But wasn't the tagine one of the sacrifices? No space, so had to go into store? Or was it that one tagine had to go in store but the other was kept to enhance the new kitchen?

Just been catching up - has it been mentioned - Derek Fletcher's party at the Bull? 80 people, on 29th March which is a Friday? Is it going to turn into some sort of Brexit Fest, with a patch of nastiness with some passing remainers?

Back to entails - love the way I learn so much from this thread. I'd never have looked up entails otherwise.

I think I dislike Eddie more than Joe. Clarrie should have run off with ... well anyone years ago.

I definitely have issues with the Willow Cottage kitchen. Too small for the tagine(s) but large enough to take the massive-seats-seven-for-bean-casserole Home Farm kitchen table. So a massive empty space surrounded by no worktop.

I think JD has more than one tagine and her sacrifice was illustrated by having to put one in storage, or maybe that was just some satire on our part at the time?

Sometimes I can't what remember what was witty dialogue by the SW and what was clever suggestions on these threads. Maybe we should collectively apply for that job on the production team so we could provide creative input.

Jenny had 2 tagines, so 1 had to go into storage.

I was surprised that there was room for any table in the kitchen. I'd imagined a galley type, like I've had in many homes, and even in houses/flats that had larger kitchens, there was no room for a table.

I guess Willow Cottage must only have a living room and a kitchen/diner.

I assume the kitchen of willow cottage was originally the one from the reasonably large house. May well have been quite large and therefore kitchen-diner after the split.

The look of a plainish kitchen can be made quite a lot nicer with attractive storage jars, stylish kettle/toaster etc, herb plants on the window ledge, not too much ugly clutter.

Joe has more emotional intelligence in his little finger than the rest of the cast put together.

Joe has more emotional intelligence in his little finger than the rest of the cast put together

Joe's emotional intelligence has been one of the visits from the personality fairy in his latter years. He was a nasty, mean minded sod when younger always out for a short cut or easy option whatever the impact on others.

Just been catching up - has it been mentioned - Derek Fletcher's party at the Bull? 80 people, on 29th March which is a Friday? Is it going to turn into some sort of Brexit Fest, with a patch of nastiness with some passing remainers?

I mentioned the significance of the date upthread. It must be quite tricky to write for - if Brexit gets put off they may have to abandon mentioning the party at all, if it's a disastrous deal it may have to be a wake, if we're all rioting in the streets they may have to write in the Ambridge riots, who knows.

Would that the personality fairy visited us all, in like manner C8H10N4O2!

I seem to remember Joe being pretty sound at the time of Ed’s ketamine addiction. Mind you, he didn’t have to be sound for long-the whole thing only lasted about a day and a half...

ErrolTheDragon
I assume the kitchen of willow cottage was originally the one from the reasonably large house. May well have been quite large and therefore kitchen-diner after the split.

Mike got a new kitchen after the house was divided and Hayley was envious about his lovely new kitchen, though.

What did the CA just say?

Boop Mia, Carrie, Alan and Will.

Anti- Boop for Lily though.

I didn't hear the CA. What did s/he say?

In the end it was nothing important! Something like 'Lily looks into the future.' And something made me think it was going to be one of those 'feel the depth of my artistic soul' offerings, with a whole episode of a middle-aged Lily looking back on some crucial Russ-based decision this week. Didn't happen, thank goodness.

I want there to be a MASSIVE Lily/Russ row, where she throws him out.

Oh, me too! Where she gives him a few home truths.

Yes there are hints that it may happen, they are bickering nicely. Lizzie doesn't know they're homeless yet , that could spark it.

I've just read about a dating app for livestock, called Tudder. It has made me very happy to think about various Ambridge farmers using it! I've just thought, did Johnny use it when he got the bull with fraudulent credentials?

My apologies if it has already been mentioned here, I tried to search for it but couldn't find it.

From Farming UK, 12th February 2019
Tinder-style app 'Tudder' lets farmers choose livestock breeding matches

The app seeks to 'unite sheepish farm animals with their soulmates'

The app seeks to 'unite sheepish farm animals with their soulmates'
Farmers have introduced a Tinder-style app, called Tudder, that lets them find breeding matches by viewing photos of livestock with details of location, age and owner.
The app, based on popular dating app Tinder, is a new swipe-led matchmaking app, helping farmers choose breeding partners for their farm animals.
It is designed by Hampshire-based farming start-up Hectare, who are also behind the website SellMyLivestock.
The app seeks to 'unite sheepish farm animals with their soulmates', featuring data-profiles of farm animals from 42,000 farms across the UK.
Playing the role of 'moo-pid', farmers can download the app, and through their phone swipe right for yes and left for no in the search for the perfect match.
Selling livestock online can speed up a process which often involves the transportation of animals across long distances for breeding.

Welsh farmer Marcus Lampard explains that it is more convenient to sell animals online.
He told Bloomberg: “Going to market is a nuisance. If I go to an open market with a bull, and then maybe bring it back, it shuts everything down on the farm for at least two weeks.’’

I think it’s unlikely the Archers will spend all of the 29 March episode talking about Brexit, that would be unusual. So Derek Fletchers party can be mentioned again on the night if needed or never mentioned again. I don’t think we’ve ever heard him have we?

Good stuff, Merde - worth it for the "moo-pid" pun alone.

I think I have heard them mention Derek Fletcher before.

Derek is an established Silent Character. He even has his own page in the Who's Who.

Please forgive me if this was mentioned before I listened to omnibus again today and Elizabeth mentioning how she would rather "burn the whole lot down" stood out - I wonder!